Legal claims defining the scope of protection. Each claim is shown in both the original legal language and a plain English translation.
1. An information processing apparatus capable of communicating with a plurality of printing devices, the information processing apparatus comprising: a registration unit configured to register, in a monitored device queue, among the plurality of printing devices, printing devices to which print jobs are to be output; a monitoring unit configured to monitor the printing devices in accordance with an order of registering the printing devices in the monitored device queue by establishing a communication session with the printing devices in a case that a number of connected printing devices to be monitored does not reach a maximum number of connected printing devices; a determination unit configured to perform a determination of whether or not predetermined conditions which relate to a number of print jobs consecutively transferred to the printing devices or time to consecutively monitor the printing device are satisfied; a monitoring interruption unit configured to interrupt monitoring of one printing device among the monitored printing devices on the basis of the determination by the determination unit by breaking the communication session with the one printing device, even if print job by the one printing device is not completed, wherein the registration unit re-registers, the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted, in the monitored device queue so as to re-establish a communication session, in a case that there is an uncompleted print job among print jobs registered in the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted while the registration unit does not register, in the monitored device queue, the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted in a case that there is not an uncompleted print job among print jobs registered in the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted; and an acquisition unit configured to start storing a print result of a print job from when the printing device is excluded from a printing device to be monitored by the information processing apparatus, and acquire the print result of the print job stored in a period until the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted is registered in a monitored device queue again as a printing device to be monitored at a timing when the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted is registered in the monitored device queue again as the printing device to be monitored.
This invention relates to managing print jobs in an information processing system with multiple printing devices. The problem addressed is efficiently handling print jobs and monitoring the status of printing devices, especially when dealing with a large number of devices or potential communication interruptions. The system includes an apparatus that communicates with several printing devices. A registration unit manages a queue of printing devices to receive print jobs. A monitoring unit establishes communication sessions with these devices in the order they are registered, up to a maximum number of concurrently monitored devices. A determination unit checks if specific conditions are met, such as the number of print jobs sent to a device or the duration of monitoring. If these conditions are met, a monitoring interruption unit breaks the communication session with a specific printing device, even if its current print job is not finished. This allows the system to manage resources and potentially switch to other devices. The registration unit then handles the interrupted device. If the interrupted device still has uncompleted print jobs, it is re-registered in the queue to re-establish communication. However, if there are no uncompleted jobs, it is not re-registered. An acquisition unit collects print results. It begins storing results from the moment a device is excluded from monitoring. It then acquires these stored results for the period the device was interrupted, up until it is re-registered and becomes a monitored device again. This ensures that print job outcomes are captured even during monitoring interruptions.
2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein, after the monitoring interruption unit interrupts the monitoring, the monitoring unit monitors the printing devices on the basis of a registration status of the printing devices registered in the monitored device queue by the registration unit.
After temporarily stopping monitoring a printer as described in the previous information processing apparatus description, the system continues monitoring other printers based on their order within the monitoring queue. This ensures that printers are monitored fairly based on their registration sequence even after one printer's monitoring is interrupted to optimize the monitoring process and resource utilization.
3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the predetermined conditions include the number of print jobs consecutively transferred to the printing devices, and a continuous monitoring time for continuously performing the monitoring.
In the information processing apparatus from the first description, the monitoring limits include both the number of print jobs sent consecutively to a printer and the duration for which a printer is continuously monitored. The system considers both factors to ensure fair and efficient monitoring, preventing any single printer from monopolizing monitoring resources for an extended period or processing an excessive number of jobs without interruption.
4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3 , further comprising a first setting unit configured to set, as one of the predetermined conditions, the number of print jobs capable of being consecutively transferred during the monitoring.
The information processing apparatus detailed in the earlier descriptions also allows setting the maximum number of consecutive print jobs that can be sent to a printer before its monitoring is temporarily interrupted. This configuration option lets administrators fine-tune monitoring behavior based on printer capabilities and network conditions, preventing overload and ensuring consistent performance across all connected printers.
5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3 , further comprising a second setting unit configured to set, as one of the predetermined conditions, a time in which continuous monitoring can be performed during the monitoring.
Building on the information processing apparatus described earlier, the system allows setting a maximum time for continuously monitoring a printer. Once this time limit is reached, monitoring of that printer is temporarily suspended. This setting allows administrators to customize monitoring based on their specific needs and to prevent any single printer from monopolizing monitoring resources for extended periods.
6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5 , further comprising an initialization unit configured to return the continuous monitoring time to an initial value when a change in print job status is reported from one of the monitored printing devices to the information processing apparatus until the time set by the second setting unit has elapsed.
Using the information processing apparatus from the earlier descriptions including the monitoring time limit, if a monitored printer reports a change in its print job status (e.g., job completion, error) before the set time limit expires, the continuous monitoring timer is reset to its initial value. This allows the printer to continue being monitored longer, as it shows active engagement.
7. A printing device monitoring method for an information processing apparatus capable of communicating with a plurality of printing devices, the printing device monitoring method comprising the steps of: sequentially registering, in a monitored device queue, among the plurality of printing devices, printing devices to which print jobs are to be output; monitoring the printing devices in accordance with an order of registering the printing devices in the monitored device queue by establishing a communication session with the printing devices in a case that a number of connected printing devices to be monitored does not reach a maximum number of connected printing devices; performing a determination of whether or not predetermined conditions which related to a number of print jobs consecutively transferred to the printing devices or time to consecutively monitor the printing devices are satisfied; interrupting monitoring of one printing device among the monitored printing devices on the basis of the determination by breaking the communication session with the one printing device, even if print job by the one printing device is not completed; re-registering, the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted, in the monitored device queue so as to re-establish a communication session, in a case that there is an uncompleted print job among print jobs registered in the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted while not registering, in the monitored device queue, the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted in a case that there is not an uncompleted print job among print jobs registered in the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted; storing a print result of a print job from when the printing device is excluded from a printing device to be monitored by the information processing apparatus, and acquiring the print result of the print job stored in a period until the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted is registered in the monitored device queue again as a printing device to be monitored at a timing when the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted is registered in the monitored device queue again as the printing device to be monitored.
A method for monitoring printers connected to an information processing apparatus involves: 1) Adding printers with pending jobs to a monitoring queue. 2) Monitoring printers in queue order, establishing communication sessions as long as the maximum monitored printers isn't reached. 3) Checking if monitoring limits (number of jobs or monitoring time) are met. 4) If limits are met, the system stops monitoring a printer by closing its communication session, even if jobs are incomplete. 5) The system re-adds the printer to the queue if it has unfinished jobs and restarts the communication session. 6) Print results are stored while the printer is unmonitored and acquired when the printer is re-registered in the queue.
8. The printing device monitoring method according to claim 7 , wherein, in the monitoring step, after the monitoring is interrupted, the printing devices are monitored on the basis of a registration status obtained after re-registering the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted.
In the printer monitoring method as previously described, after temporarily stopping monitoring of a specific printer, the subsequent monitoring of other printers continues based on the current order within the monitoring queue after the interrupted printer has been re-registered, ensuring that printer monitoring is maintained.
9. The printing device monitoring method according to claim 7 , wherein the predetermined conditions include the number of print jobs consecutively transferred to the printing devices, and a continuous monitoring time for continuously performing the monitoring.
In the printer monitoring method described earlier, the limits for monitoring interruption include both the number of print jobs sent consecutively to a printer and the duration for which a printer is continuously monitored. The method uses both values to ensure fair and effective monitoring and preventing any printer from hogging monitoring resources for extended periods or processing a great number of jobs uninterrupted.
10. The printing device monitoring method according to claim 9 , further comprising a step of setting, as one of the predetermined conditions, the number of print jobs capable of being consecutively transferred during the monitoring.
The printer monitoring method of the previous descriptions also involves setting the maximum number of consecutive print jobs that can be sent to a printer before its monitoring is temporarily interrupted. This setting allows fine-tuning of monitoring behavior, based on printer capabilities and network conditions.
11. The printing device monitoring method according to claim 9 , further comprising a step of setting, as one of the predetermined conditions, a time in which continuous monitoring can be performed during the monitoring.
The printer monitoring method from previous descriptions includes the option to set a maximum time for continuously monitoring a printer. Upon reaching this time limit, the monitoring of the printer is temporarily stopped. This allows customization of monitoring to prevent any single printer from monopolizing monitoring resources.
12. The printing device monitoring method according to claim 11 , further comprising a step of returning the continuous monitoring time to an initial value when a change in print job status is reported from one of the monitored printing devices to the information processing apparatus until the time set in the re-registering step has elapsed.
Building on the printer monitoring method described earlier, including a monitoring time limit, the continuous monitoring timer is reset to its initial value if a monitored printer reports a change in its print job status before the timer expires.
13. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a printing device monitoring program to be executed by an information processing apparatus capable of communicating with a plurality of printing devices, the printing device monitoring program comprising the steps of: sequentially registering, in a monitored device queue, among the plurality of printing devices, printing devices to which print jobs are to be output; monitoring the printing devices in accordance with an order of registering the printing devices in the monitored device queue by establishing a communication session with the printing devices in a case that a number of connected printing devices to be monitored does not reach a maximum number of connected printing devices; performing a determination of whether or not predetermined conditions which relate to a number of print jobs consecutively transferred to the printing devices or time to consecutively monitor the printing devices are satisfied; interrupting monitoring of one printing device among the monitored printing devices on the basis of the determination by breaking the communication session with the one printing device, even if print job by the one printing device is not completed; re-registering, the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted, in the monitored device queue so as to re-establish a communication session, in a case that there is an uncompleted print job among print jobs registered in the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted while not registering, in the monitored device queue, the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted in a case that there is not an uncompleted print job among print jobs registered in the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted; and storing a print result of a print job from when the printing device is excluded from a printing device to be monitored by the information processing apparatus, and acquiring the print result of the print job stored in a period until the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted is registered in the monitored device queue again as a printing device to be monitored at a timing when the printing device whose monitoring is interrupted is registered in the monitored device queue again as the printing device to be monitored.
A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program that monitors printers, performing the steps of: 1) Adding printers with pending print jobs to a monitoring queue. 2) Monitoring printers in queue order, establishing communication sessions if the maximum monitored printers isn't reached. 3) Checking if monitoring limits (number of jobs or monitoring time) are met. 4) If limits are met, the system stops monitoring a printer by closing its communication session, even if jobs are incomplete. 5) The system re-adds the printer to the queue if it has unfinished jobs and restarts the communication session. 6) Print results are stored while the printer is unmonitored and acquired when the printer is re-registered in the queue.
Unknown
August 12, 2014
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